The Past Is Future
by Jokerboi316
Summary: A group of humans attempt to escape a global nuclear war through the use of time travel. However, something goes wrong with Sam Mitchell's pod, flinging him far into the future, into a time where humans no longer exist and a race of sentient ponies now thrive as the dominant life form. Can Sam handle living as the only human?
1. Chapter 1 How Long Was I Out?

**This Is My First Fan Fic so there might be some faults but just read it and enjoy!**

Chapter 1: How Long Was I Out?

Standing in the dimly-lit room, surrounded by crumbling cinderblock walls, Sam Mitchell stared at himself in the mirror. The single, feeble yellow light bulb hanging over the cot behind him revealed an exhausted figure glaring back from the mirror. The weak light didn't do any favors for his pale complexion, and dulled the color of his eyes. He remembered that they used to be a bright blue. A long-established diet of war rations and military meals-ready-to-eat had left him with a thin, lean build, exaggerated by the unkempt mass of brown hair on his head.

"Today's the day", he noted.

The war had been raging for some time now, and the shells just kept falling. How one had not been dropped on THIS research station was a miracle, as it seemed like they got closer every day. Only a few nuclear bombs had been detonated, but they had managed to ruin and contaminate enough land to cover a huge portion of the planet in radioactive fallout. Even if anyone survived the war, there wouldn't be much left to go back to. Not for at least a few hundred years, anyway, hence the reason for today's "festivities", as they had begun to be referred to around the station.

Time-viewing had long been achievable, though actual time-travel was still in the works. Once string theory and M-theory had finally been combined into one workable "theory of everything" earlier at the turn of the 23rd century, it was just a matter of time before that level of technology was attained. It was also the cause of the war; as if out of a Greek tragedy, each country with access to time-viewing technology saw a future filled with attacks and conflicts, provoking them into becoming the very cause of those attacks by launching "preemptive strikes."

Sam reflected on the events leading to today. How fitting, then, that the very technology that started all of this would be what could hopefully save a part of humanity.

Today was to be the culmination of a year's worth of work. After several failed attempts over the previous months, last week the research team had finally sent something into the future: a living animal, a dog named Laika. Unlike her namesake, this dog survived the trip. When they activated the capsule, it appeared to vanish, only to reappear precisely five hours later. The clock sent with the dog registered a much shorter elapsed time, mere seconds. Today would be much different, though; in attempt to escape to a place untouched by war and nuclear fallout, Sam, his family, the scientists, and various other lottery-selected citizens would be using these capsules to send themselves a few hundred years into the future. By then, it was estimated that mother nature would have healed some of the ravages of war and that much of the nuclear fallout would have dissipated. Each capsule would be carrying with it a single passenger, a few personal luxuries, and a digital archive containing a history of human civilization and technical details regarding the passenger's occupation. Additionally, a survival kit featuring collapsible shelter, basic tools, a few meals-ready-to-eat, and a "universal translator" of sorts was stored in another compartment to give the survivor an initial boost. The capsule itself had removable panels that revealed solar cells to help power any initial colonies.

Sam had had his "personal luxuries" packed for days now; all he really wanted was his computer and digital music player. His laptop contained all that remained of his life before the war: photographs, books, favorite movies, music, and the project files from his job as a computer hardware engineer. Likewise, his archive would contain a veritable how-to on recreating almost every piece of computational and electronic technology Sam's country had produced.

He stood up, adjusted his blue, one-size-fits-all cloth shirt and pants, and grabbed his bag. He made a few steps down the hallway, just as decrepit and gray as his room, to claim his spot in the fleet of time-capsules. Sam was halfway through, and checking his watch when a massive quake tore through the complex.

Immediately sirens and warning lights screamed to life. A panicked voice on the intercom began shouting orders to scramble to the capsules. Not wanting to hang around to find out what happened, Sam sprinted through the corridor towards the capsule hangar, trying not to knock over or run into any of the other equally frantic base occupants. As he continued towards the hangar, he passed through a section of hallway featuring one of the only five windows on-base. What he saw froze him in his tracks and made his blood run cold: just on the edge of the horizon, Sam saw the flared top of a mushroom cloud blocking out the setting sun.

Snapping out of his horror, Sam noticed the crowd in the corridor had long outpaced him. He knew there were only mere minutes before the shockwave hit the base. His mind devoid of nearly any other thought, Sam raced as fast as he could to the capsule hangar. After what felt like an eternity of running, Sam was greeted by the sight of a grid of steel coffins laid out on the ground. Several capsules had already been activated and sent on their way; the remaining pods were still in the process of fading from the current time period. Though he had no time to express it, he was relieved that everyone else was safely on their way to the future.

Sam raced to his designated pod, and jumped in. He scrambled to enter the correct activation commands. Just as the hum of the time-engine began, he felt the world turn upside down as the nuclear shockwave hit the base, and his capsule. Even through the reinforced steel of the capsule, the roar of the inferno outside deafened him. He didn't even have time to scream before it all went silent.

The sun shone brightly; it was yet another beautiful day in Canterlot. The shopkeepers happily showed off their wares for the high-class ponies that window-shopped their way through the cobblestoned-streets. The stone and stucco walls of the buildings looked as if they'd been cleaned only moments ago. In the cafes, mares with perfectly-coiffed manes and intricately-designed dresses chatted idly as they sipped their tea.

This serene scene of everyday life was soon interrupted, as a bright orange flash illuminated the market square, followed by a loud crash and clattering of steel as a flaming, battered metal capsule came tumbling out of thin air, tearing out chunks of cobblestone as it careened into one of the many dress shops along the street.

As the dust settled, a brown stallion from the cobbler's shop next door stepped forward to examine the wreckage. Seeing a few flames beginning to leap about, he quickly stomped those out, and turned his attention to the charred, dented metal box that caused this. Extending a hoof to touch it, he swiftly jerked it back with a yelp; he could get no closer than a few inches from the thing without the tough, keratinous tissue of his hoof beginning to smolder.

A matter of minutes later, the shining armor of the Canterlot Royal Guard blocked the public's view. A crowd had long gathered around them, trying to peer over the guards' shoulders. Once the metal had cooled a little, the guards began inspecting the pod and brushing the charred remains of shredded cloth off of it, searching for any kind of writing or distinctive marks that hadn't been scraped off by the heat and impact.

One of the guards managed to partially pry open the lid; seeing the unconscious alien within, he quickly slammed it shut, and matter-of-factly said to his sergeant, "Sir, maybe we should inform the Princess."

The squad leader nodded. "While we wait for further instructions from Her Highness, let's get this... Thing... To the castle dungeons."

Sam awoke to find himself restrained on a gurney in what appeared to be a medieval dungeon. His eyes struggled to see in the torch-lit cell. Looking around, he saw two ponies alternating their gaze between him and their notepads, separated from him by a set of thick iron bars. One pony had a white, frizzed-out mane, an equally pale coat, and a pair of spectacles balanced on his muzzle. The other, younger-looking equine was a navy blue, with a short shock of green hair for a mane with what appeared to be a horn on its forehead. Both were wearing something resembling lab coats.

"Ponies...?" Sam shook his head a few times, not sure if he was hallucinating or having some sort of bizarre dream. He was leaning towards dreaming, considering the coloration of the more youthful pony, and the strange sounds coming out of their mouths. It almost sounded like speech, but like no language he'd ever heard before.

The two lab ponies, as Sam mentally named them, seemed to be conversing with the guards. The guards didn't seem to have nearly as much enthusiasm as the lab ponies had for whatever they'd written down. Though it would be futile to speak, Sam reasoned, he figured it wouldn't hurt to at least try to say something.

"Hey! Can you hear me?" Sam stared right at the white lab pony. It responded by excitedly jotting something else down.

"Professor Hoofstein, is that thing trying to speak to us?" Bunsen asked, moving his green mane out of his eyes.

The white pony adjusted his lab coat, "Why yes, I think it just might be! It's too early to say for certain, but judging by its morphology, particularly the shape of its head and the fact that it has opposable thumbs, it appears to be some sort of primate, possibly even one possessing sapience!"

"Should I loosen its restraints so that we can attempt to interact with it?" Bunsen asked curiously.

The bound alien shouted something, startling the pair of researchers.

Professor Hoofstein's pupils shrank. "Oh, Celestia, no! Not yet. It could be a dangerous species, whatever it is. Possibly a predator of sorts, given the forward-facing placement of its eyes. You heard the Princess when she called us here, our first assignment is to assess any possible threats this creature may pose. Which test would you like to try first?"

Bunsen raised a hoof to his chin and stared up at the ceiling. "Well, we may be testing it, but I don't think we aim to torture or starve it. Might as well go ahead and attempt to discern its diet."

Hoofstein nodded in agreement. "Very well. Grab that cart at the end of the hallway and bring it here."

The younger researcher left, returning a few seconds later with a wooden cart bearing a few different kinds of fruit, vegetables, some dairy products, and a few cages containing a rabbit, squirrel, and a mouse. The elder scientist mentally recoiled a bit at the thought of possibly feeding a carnivore, but it was, after all, part of the test, he reasoned.

The guard opened the cell. Bunsen placed the food near the gurney that the creature was bound to, and unlocked the cages containing the rodents, leaving the hungry guest to open them at its leisure.

"Bunsen, feel free to undo the restraints once the cell is closed."

Upon hearing the lock click, Bunsen concentrated and his horn began to glow a light green, as did the canvas straps on the creature's limbs as they loosened and fell away. The alien looked at both ponies, who could detect some confusion in its eyes. Hoofstein raised a hoof and pointed it at the food.

Guessing that the pony was signaling for him to examine what they'd put in the cell, Sam began picking through the pile. He wasn't sure why they'd put the little animals in with him, but the fruits, (at least he thought they were fruits), were pretty enticing to him, so he began to eat. Picking up a red fruit that vaguely resembled a cross between a strawberry and a pear, he took a small bite at first, in case it was poisonous to him, and set it down for a few minutes. He noticed that the two lab ponies had confused expressions on their faces.

After a few moments, Sam was feeling no ill effects. In any case, the fruit was sweet and his growling stomach demanded more, so he obliged. The lab ponies seemed elated by this as he stuffed his face with the various fruits, vegetables, and cheeses before him. Their expressions of excitement, however, quickly turned to shock as Sam turned his attention to the caged animals next to the veggie pile.

As he began petting the rabbit, he heard a collective sigh from the pair when he offered the rabbit a carrot.

Bunsen was grinning. "Does that mean its safe for us to get closer to it now?"

The Professor was more restrained. "Not quite, but its certainly a good step in the right direction. Next we need to examine the objects that it was found with." He pointed towards the saddlebags leaning on the corridor wall. "Let's start with this thing." The Professor pulled out a thin, curved, wiry object. It seemed to be made out of a flexible material, and certainly didn't seem capable of cutting, burning, or firing anything at anypony. One end had a small, foam tip, while the other end terminated in a rounded black box with a sort of hook.

The creature saw the Professor holding that, and began making motions toward both its ear and the Professor's ear, while loudly crying something out.

Bunsen scratched his head. "It seems to want that thing to touch yours and its ears together?"

"I'm not sure... One second... Oh! There are two of these... Things." Hoofstein leaned closer to the cell bars. The creature slowly moved towards the bars, holding its forelimbs out and the bottom of its front paws extended out flat. Once only a few inches separated the Professor and the alien, the alien turned its head and fully pulled its hair away from its ear.

"Bunsen, look at the shape of this hook," pointing to the heftier end of the object, "It looks as if it would fit on the creatures ear!" Hoofstein tapped the creature's shoulder, causing it to look him dead in the eyes. He lifted a hoof, pointed at the device, and then pointed at the side of the aliens head. The creature responded by repeating the gesture, and turned its ear towards the Professor again.

The Professor slowly hooked the object onto the creature's head. It then responded by pointing to the other, identical device, and pointed back to the Professor's own ears. He put the device on as securely as he could, given how different his own ears were. The creature then tapped something on the boxy end of the device, causing the one on the Professor's head to give out a small "BEEP."

"Professor, what are you doing?" Bunsen cocked his head.

"I'm not sure. Keep watching it." Hoofstein saw the creature making gestures towards its mouth and his own mouth, and it seemed to be gibbering endlessly.

Suddenly, the Professor heard a strange voice coming from the device on his ear, "Can... hear... me?"

"Can you hear me?" Sam practically shouted into the microphone on his ear. He continued speaking and gesturing to his mouth, hoping the pony would pick up on what was going on. He just needed for both of them to speak into these devices long enough for the translation algorithm to pick up some of the basics of converting between both languages.

Eventually, Sam heard the mechanical voice in his ear respond, "What... this... thing... ear?" The pony was moving its hoof towards its ear.

"Translator! Can you understand me at all?" Sam was elated to finally figure out what was going on.

"Can understand me?" The Professor heard it again.

He turned towards Bunsen. "This must be some sort of magical translator! The sentences are becoming a bit more clear and well structured. The creature just asked me 'can understand me?' !"

Bunsen's jaw dropped. "Incredible!"

After roughly an hour of them exchanging basic sentences, Sam found that the translation was becoming more comprehensible.

"I am Professor Hoofstein. The pony next to me is Bunsen. What are you?"

Sam stood still, staring in shock at the scene before him. I've just traveled in time, and am now a prisoner of sapient ponies. Who can talk. What. The. Hell.

The professor knocked a hoof against the cell bars, snapping Sam out of his daydream.

Sam startled slightly, and adjusted his mic. "Sorry. My name is Sam Mitchell. I am a human male. Why am I locked up? Where are the other humans? They were in capsules like mine."

Hoofstein shook his head. "We have never seen your kind before. You are locked up because we are studying you. For now, we are assessing if you pose us a threat. We saw no other capsules or... Humans? We only found you. But, there will be time for YOUR questions later. First thing's first, how did you get here, and WHY are you here?" The white pony had a slightly incredulous look on his face.

Sam considered arguing, but he realized, at least for now, it was probably best to cooperate. These ponies did at least do him the favor of not *immediately* assuming he was out to hurt them.

"Fair enough, I suppose. It's a long story, but the short version is that my people were caught in the middle of a massive, global war, and we tried to escape it by transporting ourselves into the future by using capsules like the one you apparently found me in."

Hoofstein took this information surprisingly well. He began scratching his head. "That is quite interesting. Provided we can reconstruct that machine of yours, that will certainly further our own understanding of time travel."

Sam doubted they'd be able to understand the time engine, but was intrigued that they might be familiar with time travel. "Your society is capable of time travel?"

Hoofstein nodded. "Somewhat. The spells we have developed through history have only allowed us brief, temporary existence in other time periods."

Sam's mind had stepped out of the building again. "Ahem, Sam? Are you ok?" Hoofstein coughed.

Sam shook his head as if something had landed on it, snapping back to attention.

"Spells? As in magic?" Sam's eyebrow was on the verge of rising right off of his forehead.

"Of course! You didn't think Bunsen's horn here was just for show, did you?" The Professor mumbled something to Bunsen, whose unintelligible response was accompanied by a slight chuckle.

"I guess I did. How does this magic work? Can you use it?" Sam was fascinated by the idea of this; it hadn't hit him until this point that when he was released, his restraints seemed to just let him go of their own volition.

"Me? No, I'm just an earth pony. As for where magic comes from... Well, frankly we've never really stopped to consider that." Hoofstein turned to Bunsen, and they conversed briefly in their own language. "Bunsen says it's second nature, as if it's an extra limb or an extension of your mind."

Sam scratched his chin. He theorized that, maybe, just maybe, 'magic' was a form of manipulation of quantum physics, and unicorns were a species capable of this. Shaking his head, he remembered he had his own questions that still needed answering.

"So, am I going to be allowed any questions yet?"

"Not yet. There's still the matter of all of the strange objects we found with you." Hoofstein motioned to Bunsen, who produced pictures of the gear Sam had packed with him. He was relieved to see that most of it, save for the tent and archive drive, were completely intact.

Sam decided to clear all of this up quickly. "Alright. The rectangular object there is a laptop computer. Later, I may be able to demonstrate what it does, but think of it as a small library or a very powerful calculator. The bottom part allows me to input text, and the top part displays the output, which may be more text or pictures. The small perforations allow sound to be output."

The two ponies exchanged a few brief words, and very excited looks. This visitor claimed to be from the past, but his technology was far more advanced than their own.

Hoofstein then pointed to a small, black device. Sam nodded. "That's a music player. You can connect it to the computer, and transfer music from the computer to the player."

"A miniature, record-less record player?" The Professor's jaw dropped slightly. Sam nodded.

Next, he pointed at the survival tools. Sam explained what they were for, and, satisfied that they weren't offense weapons, Hoofstein moved on to the final object, the archive drive. Sam was visibly bothered by its condition; the connection port had been broken off, and the case was dented. He wondered if anything would be recoverable, assuming he could fix the connector.

"That WAS a data archive. It's a specialized storage device with a data capacity far above that of my computer, hence the separate unit. Assuming it's still recoverable, it contains a large portion of my people's history as well as an additional section unique to the carrier. In my case, it's a database of computer technology, since I was an electrical and computer engineer in my own time."

Hoofstein's eyes went as wide as dinner plates. He knew that finding these objects and their owner would be an incredible find, but to realize that he'd practically been given a preserved copy of pre-Equestrian history... His mind was on the verge of exploding.

"Sam, it is becoming increasingly apparent that we have much more to learn from you than can possibly be relayed just through me." Hoofstein motioned towards the devices clamped on his and Sam's ear. "If you could be so kind as to describe to me the process by which these devices translate our words, my brilliant assistant here should be able to develop a spell based on the procedure that should perform the same function, but for everyone around you."

"If I do, will you FINALLY answer some questions for me?" Sam was slowly losing patience.

Professor Hoofstein nodded, and passed the headset to Bunsen. They then spent the next few hours discussing the process by which the headsets allowed them to communicate. Once satisfied, Hoofstein reclaimed the headset.

"It will take him the rest of the night to research this. Fortunately, he says there is a similar spell for another language our society is encountered; he should be able to adapt it based on your program. It seems that magic and your 'programming' style of describing processes aren't terribly dissimilar. I hope that your night isn't too unpleasant, but do understand that we initially locked you up for everyone's safety, including your own."

Sam realized he still had no real answers to his own questions, and he was getting a little pissed. "Oh no, you aren't going ANYWHERE until you finally stop and answer at least one of my questions."

Hoofstein was taken aback. He hadn't been outright ignoring Sam's requests; his mind was still reeling over the day's discoveries. "But of course, I'm terribly sorry. As I'm sure you can understand, this whole event makes one a bit preoccupied. Ask away, please."

Sam closed his eyes and let out a relieved sigh. "Ok. What year is it?"

The Professor said matter-of-factly, "Why, it's 1003 PCV, meaning after Celestia's victory over Nightmare Moon."

Sam cocked his head. "Ok, nevermind. That doesn't tell me how far into the future from my OWN time I am. Do me a favor, near where my head should have been inside the capsule, there's a small clock-like device, a chronometer, that measures how far the capsule has suspended itself from time. Dismount it and let me read it."

"Of course, Bunsen needs to grab something from that room anyway."

Bunsen returned a few minutes later with the chronometer in his mouth. To Sam's surprise, the three digits read '010', as if he'd only been sent 10 years into the future.

"You say that society as you know it has been around for at least a thousand years?" Sam was clearly worried about something.

Hoofstein responded, "Yes, probably far longer than that. The princesses are at least a few thousand years old, themselves."

Sam's mind was on overdrive. He was obviously further in time than a mere ten years, meaning the chronometer must have 'rolled over', having only three digits. After all, he was only supposed to travel a maximum of a thousand years. Coupling that information with the fact that a race of intelligent, talking pony-like creatures have evolved to become the dominant race on the planet...

Sam was easily estimating that the capsule had easily sent him at least a few hundred million years forward in time.

"What could have caused this?!" He screamed in his own mind. He realized he was pacing around his cell. "Right as I was activating the pod... The explosion hit me... There's no telling what that could have done to the controls, and the surge of energy from the radiation into the time-engine..."

The two researcher ponies exchanged worried glimpses, their 'guest' was now frantically pacing and yelling at the top of his lungs.

The Professor attempted to talk Sam down. "Everything ok? What's the problem?"

Sam felt something in his mind snap. "Ok?! OK?! I JUST FOUND OUT I'M A MILLION YEARS, POSSIBLY MORE, AWAY FROM EVERYONE I KNOW. SINCE PERMANENT TRAVEL TO THE PAST IS A SCIENTIFIC IMPOSSIBILITY, AND I'M OBVIOUSLY THE ONLY HUMAN AROUND, THAT MEANS THAT EVERYONE I KNOW AND LOVE IS DEAD!" Sam stopped and gave a fiery glare towards the Professor that could have set water on fire. He resumed his pacing, throwing his hands in the air wildly. "DEAD! GONE! DUST! MY PEOPLE, MY FAMILY! GONE! YEAH, YOU DAMN PONY, EVERYTHING IS PERFECTLY ABSOLUTELY FINE!"

The two ponies realized their manes had been blown back. Meanwhile, their observation subject continued stomping around his cell, screaming out one continuous string of words that, although the translator could not process them for the Professor, were obviously not meant for the meek-hearted or soft-hooved.

Professor Hoofstein nervously grinned and quietly mumbled a goodnight before the two scientists left for the evening, with Sam still cursing as hard and as loudly as he could.

Sam's anger finally burned itself out, leaving him laying on the straw-pile of a bed. He stared blankly at the wall opposite of the cell bars. His mind could only focus on a few words, usually a variation of 'they're all gone' or 'I'm alone'. He couldn't sleep. As the realization slowly mounted, he could feel his eyes stinging a bit, as a few heavy tears fell from them.

The next morning, Bunsen and the Professor returned, with Bunsen bearing a scroll in his mouth. It took him far less time than he expected to adapt the translation spell, much to his relief. After the previous day's excitement, he needed a good night's sleep. Once they reached the end of the dank, stony dungeon, it became apparent to them that Sam had not had such rest.

The human was sitting slumped against the wall, and his eyes had formed dark circles beneath them. The cell was a mess; Sam may have burned his anger out, but not before upsetting, overturning, or smashing anything he could. Fortunately, that was a limited list of items.

Hoofstein motioned to Bunsen. "Alright, let's try out that spell of yours."

Bunsen nodded, and began focusing his energy. Sam's ears and throat began to glow, and he took notice of a slight warming sensation as the spell did its work.

Bunsen was the first to speak. "Sam? Can you understand me? Please let me know so I can adjust the spell if need be."

Sam replied, with a very monotone, very emotionless intonation. "Yes. I can hear you. The spell worked."

Bunsen triumphantly pumped a hoof in the air.

Hoofstein spoke up with a slight tone of concern in his voice. "Sam, are you alright?"

Sam continued staring into the floor. "Yes. Fine."

"Good! Let's get started, then, shall we? That archive of yours, how do we access it?"

"Can't. It's broken."

Bunsen piped in, "Can it be fixed?"

"Maybe. I don't know."

It was clear Sam wasn't totally willing to cooperate anymore. Hoofstein was the one getting impatient for a change. "Sam. I don't think you understand. This is a huge discovery for us. Can you fix it?"

Sam briefly came to his senses. He realized this was his one bargaining chip. He knew exactly what needed to be done to attempt to recover the disk, and that he was literally the only living being on the planet that could fix it. He turned his gaze back to the Professor. "Yes, actually, I'm pretty sure I could. And I'm willing to..." The scientists were beaming. "...On one condition." The ponies smiles vanished.

The Professor responded, "What's the condition? Seriously, name it and I'll do whatever I can to meet it, just promise me you can and will fix that archive!"

Sam rose to his feet, walked over to the cell door and grasped the bars. "You let me out of here. It's apparent that I'm here in this place and time for the long-haul, and I don't aim to be locked up like a criminal for the rest of my natural life."

Hoofstein shook his head. "Sam, it's not that simple. Bunsen, myself, and the rest of the research team, who you'll meet soon, are used to seeing strange things, no offense. But the rest of society... We have no idea how they'll react."

Sam began his death glare again. "Oh, it most certainly is that simple. You want that archive fixed? You get me released, or at least more civil living conditions. I don't care WHAT you have to do. I'm the only one who can fix it. Assuming I can physically repair it, I'm also the only one capable of accessing and interpreting the data it contains and I don't aim to do it for nothing." Sam reached through the bars and jabbed Hoofstein in the chest with his index finger. "Let me reiterate: if you want the data, you're going to get me out of here."

There was an awkward silence as the Professor attempted to process the ultimatum, and avoid Sam's furious stare.

Bunsen spoke up. "Professor? We already noted that the subject possesses no natural defenses. The artifacts that came with him are clearly not weapons, at least not for offensive purposes, and his diet doesn't suggest a predatory nature. Surely that would be enough to convince Celestia that Sam isn't a threat when she comes to see all of this for herself?"

Professor Hoofstein scarcely had enough time to formulate his reluctant assent when a tall, slender, white alicorn slowly walked into view, her shimmering multi-colored mane seemingly giving off its own light.

The two researchers immediately dropped into a kneel, and collectively shouted, "Princess!"

The Princess broke the silence, smiling kindly. "Sounds like you two have a lot to catch me up on!" She gestured towards Sam. "I'm guessing that is the cause of yesterday's excitement?"

Bunsen and Hoofstein nodded.

"Can he understand us?"

Bunsen again nodded.

Celestia giggled. "Oh no need to be so reserved around me, my little scientists!"

Professor Hoofstein nervously answered, "Yes, well, it was just such an honor to be personally chosen by YOU for this project! And you have come at just the right moment. Our visitor here, a human! Have you ever heard of such?! He had in his possession an archive detailing his race's history. Ancient, pre-Equestrian history!" The Professor began to ramble. "It's broken though, and he, his name is Sam Mitchell, can fix it! But he refuses, unless he's released to live normally, but we can't do that without your approval, which you should give, (if you want!), because we have proof that he's quite probably totally completely harm-"

The Princess cut him off with a gentle hoof to his muzzle, still wearing that kind smile on her face. "I overheard everything Bunsen said. And I agree. I'd hate to keep him locked up if he's no real threat to us." With that, Celestia realized she had yet to actually address her new subject. "Oh, where are my manners, Sam Mitchell. My name is Celestia, I am the princess and ruler of Equestria. I understand that you are not from around here and now."

Sam nodded. He temporarily forgot his rage; he'd never seen such a magnificent creature. His adrenaline wearing off, his voice returned to a dull, robotic tone. "Yes, it's nice to meet you."

Celestia continued. "So, it should be obvious to you that I intend to let you out of here. I regret that you were locked up in the first place, but I'm sure my two top researchers here have explained to you why; I just didn't want to run the risk of exposing my subjects to anything dangerous. However, though I feel certain you mean us no harm, I intend to have you under supervision, as much for your own safety as ours. Meanwhile, you can live more or less normally as you attempt to help us learn about you, your history, and your culture."

Sam's exhaustion was getting the better of him; he simply nodded his head and mumbled, "Sounds fair to me, and you can just call me Sam." He only heard the Princess say "I intend to let you out", the rest was unimportant.

The Princess nodded in return. "Good! I must admit, I've been around for quite a long time, so the idea of learning about civilizations that predate even myself... It's quite exciting."

Sam decided to bring up the circumstances he'd be living under. "So, you say you want supervision over me. Does that mean you're going to have me live with Bunsen or the Professor?" He looked at the scientists. "Because no offense guys, but I don't think I like the sound of that." The researchers glared at him briefly.

The Princess laughed. "Oh, come now, they aren't that bad are they?" Bunsen grinned. "But no, in fact, I have got the perfect pony in mind to take charge of you. That is, after you've recovered from all of this for a few days."

"Hey! I thought this was OUR project!" Hoofstein exclaimed.

"Don't worry, you still are in charge of examining the data and the objects that Sam does not need in order to work on restoring the archive. But, the pony I'm thinking of will be able to better handle helping Sam get comfortable living here, and as a result allowing him to better work with us to learn about him." Celestia turned back to Sam, and unlocked the cell door. Sensing his apprehension, she attempted to reassure him. "Don't worry, I'm sure you will get along great with this pony, she is, after all, my best student. Now, in the meantime, I intend to make up for this rough greeting; I'll have a guest room in the palace made up so you can get some rest, I think you could use it. Come with me, I'll be happy to answer any questions you might have."

To My Most Faithful Student,

I'm sure by now you've heard of the little incident in Canterlot's market square a few days ago. Contrary to popular belief, it was not an accident involving an unloading moving cart.

Rather, a most amazing thing happened. A being from long before our society existed has been transported to our time! I'm sure I don't need to explain to you the implications of this event and the ancient history it will allow us to study. Even more, his people were far more advanced technologically than we are, though in his time, our primary innovation, magic, was regarded as superstition! But I'm rambling...

In any case, you can see there is much for you to learn here, and I have a special favor to ask of you in regards to our visitor. I would like to discuss it in person with you here at the palace, and as such, I would like to request your presence in Canterlot at your earliest convenience.

Sincerely,

Princess Celestia

Down in Ponyville, shouts of excitement could be heard coming from inside a certain tree-house. A lavender unicorn mare was sprinting around inside, carefully avoiding knocking her painstakingly-shelved books from their resting places as she ran, her deep-purple mane with its pink stripe trailing behind her. Struggling to keep up with her, a small baby dragon was shouting, too, though for different reasons.

"Twilight Sparkle! Slow down will ya?! What's all the excitement about, anyway? Did your request for the new stock of spellbooks come through?" The little dragon was panting.

The purple pony stopped running, and started hopping in place. "Even better, Spike! Princess Celestia has another personal project for me! They've discovered something BIG in Canterlot, and I get to be part of it!" Twilight's eyes grew wide. "SPIKE! We have to pack for Canterlot! NOW!"

Spike sighed. "Can't it wait until after lunch at least? I'm starved." He patted his round stomach.

Twilight giggled. "Oh, Spike, don't you ever think about anything besides your appetite?"

Spike rolled his eyes. "Hey, a guy's gotta eat."

"Fair enough. I've got to run through my checklists a few more times anyway, in case I missed any of the sub-checklists. OH! I should make a checklist on what to ask the Princess when I get there! Spike, I'll need your help for this. Spike? Ugh. He must be long gone, stuffing his face. Oh well!"

Twilight began scanning through her long flowing lists, for the fifth time that day. Satisfied that she had completed the day's chores, she began levitating items into her saddlebags, preparing for her trip to Canterlot.


	2. Chapter 2 Dealing With It

**Hey everyone JokerBoi Here, I just wanted to say thanks to everyone for the support of the story and for being patient waiting for the new chapter I want to make a promise to all the readers this story WILL NOT be left unfinished, I will finish it to the end. Thanks again and enjoy the hugely anticipated new chapter….**

**Chapter 2: Dealing With It**

Twilight was beside herself; she hadn't felt this much anticipation since Princess Celestia first chose her for private lessons as a young filly. When she received the Princess's letter that morning... She had to try to push it all from her mind; it was all she could do to keep from galloping up and down the aisles of the train car. She couldn't help but laugh a little at the sleeping form of her little dragon friend; not quite sharing her enthusiasm, Spike had long drifted off to sleep curled up next to her on the cloth-covered seat, despite the fact that it was still mid-day. Twilight shook her head. She tried to occupy her thoughts with the beautiful forest scenery passing by on the other side of the window.

Eventually, the train rounded the curve of the mountain bearing the City of Canterlot, bringing the castle into view. Twilight's smile seemed to extend for miles; she never grew tired of the sight of Canterlot's skyline. As the train began slowing down on approach to the rail station, Twilight attempted to rouse her "#1 Assistant" from his nap; the way he had been giggling in his sleep, there was no doubt that he'd been dreaming again of his crush, their friend Rarity. Twilight laughed as Spike struggled to sit up, rubbing his eyes with his free hand.

"So, Spike, what horror did you save Rarity from this time?" Twilight giggled.

Spike's face turned beet-red. "I'll have you know that I took Rarity on a nice, romant- HEY. I see what you're trying to do."

"What? You're adorable when you're embarrassed." Twilight could hear the conductor announcing their arrival at Canterlot. "Anyway, would you mind passing me my bag there?"

Spike obliged, and the pair began making their way off the train and onto the platform.

Twilight re-read the Princess's letter for the thousandth time. "Spike, I know you don't quite take the same interest in science and history as I do, so if you want to go hang out at the donut shop, I can spare you a few bits for a snack while you wait on me."

Spike thoughtfully rubbed at his chin as he considered the offer. "That's really tempting Twi, but I think I wanna see what's got you and the Princess so excited. A pony from the past... I wonder what kinda food they ate back then?"

Twilight placed a hoof on her forehead. "Always with the food," she thought. "Well, Spike, the Princess said he came from a time before our society existed, as in, before ponykind existed... So... Who knows what sort of being may be waiting for us?"

As the two made their way towards the castle through the market district, Spike began animatedly conjecturing as to what the time-traveler might look like. "What if he's got the head of a pony, but the body of... Hmm.. An alligator! Yeah! Or, maybe he'd have dragon wings? Wow, wouldn't that be cool! He'd be like a flying dinosaur or something!"

Twilight chuckled and rolled her eyes. "Oh Spike, such an imagination! I'm sure whatever he is, he's not THAT bizarre."

After several minutes of heated discussion over the what a time-traveler might look like, the pair made it to the castle gates. No matter how many times Twilight saw the castle, it never failed to take her breath away; the way the light reflected off of the tall, ivory towers, tipped with golden-teardrop spires further emphasized the opulence of this massive palace. The guards at the main entrance immediately recognized the Princess's most favored student, and, having expected her arrival, immediately escorted her and Spike to the main hall, where Celestia was waiting.

At the sight of her student entering, the Princess immediately moved off of her throne to meet her in the middle of the room. "Twilight! My, what a quick turn-around on my letter." Celestia was beaming. She continued, "You always were one for punctuality! So, let me get right to the point. As I said in the letter, we have a visitor of sorts from the past. When we found him, he had a sort of archive in his possession that could be the key to unlocking much of what we currently lack in our understanding of pre-Equestrian history."

Twilight's eyes grew to the size of dinner plates. Spike yawned.

Twilight's excitement was audible. "Think of all the books I... We could write with that knowledge! But what does that have to do with me? I'm sure you've got the archive in the hooves of the university researchers by now."

Celestia motioned to follow her. "Normally, yes, that would be the case. But, before I tell you your proposed role, why don't I introduce you to our guest?" The Princess led Twilight and Spike to the upper-floor guest suites. The trio stopped in front of one of doors. The Princess knocked at it.

"This is the Princess. I've got someone I want you to meet, we're coming in if that's alright."

There was no answer. The Princess laughed quietly. "He's still adjusting to us. Come in."

Twilight and Spike followed the Princess into the room. Her mind began to race, wondering what sort of creature she was about to see; she silently prayed that Spike's earlier guesses were wrong. She was relieved to see that her fears were unfounded; the creature that sat on the enormous, fluffy bed, returning her stare, was far less intimidating than she'd expected, and besides, if the Princess was this cavalier around him, he must not be all THAT bad. She noticed he barely met Celestia's height as he stood up on two legs...

Spike piped up. "Hey! He walks like me!"

Twilight's curiosity was instantly piqued. Forgetting her apprehension, she trotted right up to Sam, circling him, and began barraging him with questions. "You're bipedal?! What sort of creature are you? What was the past like? How'd you get here and why are-" Twilight's inquisition was cut short by the Princess's hoof on her shoulder. She noticed that the visitor's eyes were a little sunken, and she could have sworn there was a touch of sadness on his face. "Oh. Sorry."

The Princess's voice took on an apologetic tone. "Forgive my student's eagerness. Sam, this is my best, and closest student, Twilight Sparkle. I've been personally teaching her since she was a tiny filly." She turned her head to the lavender unicorn. "And Twilight, this is Sam Mitchell. He is the time-traveling guest I have told you about."

Spike interjected. "Princess, are you sure he's not an awesome-cool-super-tough dragon-pony with a lion's body?"

Twilight face-hoofed. "Spike!"

The young dragon shrugged, and made for the door. "If you need me, I'll be outside in the market. I'm starving!"

Twilight shook her head. Turning her attention to Sam, she extended a hoof in greeting. Sam grasped and weakly shook it.

The Princess began again. "Now that you've been introduced, Twilight, I can tell you how your talents will play into things. The archive Sam has is damaged. It's beyond our capabilities to fix, but he has agreed to work with our researchers to fix it and recover the historical data from it. In return, we will allow him to live -relatively- freely. However, for his safety and ours, I would like somepony responsible to help him adjust to things, so I would like him to stay with you a while. You would also have a unique position to observe and learn from him." Celestia looked at Sam, slightly concerned that he'd been silent through this exchange. "Sam, I know I already discussed this with you, but are you alright with this?"

Sam flatly answered, "Yes, Princess." He shook his head as if snapping out of a trance. "That sounds fine. Twilight seems nice."

Twilight's enthusiasm was only slightly dampened by Sam's deadpan attitude. "Princess, that sounds great! If... Sam, right?" She looked up at the human. "I'm sure once you're settled, you'll love Ponyville as much as I do! Oh I can't wait! I've got so many questions... I want to know EVERYTHING!"

The enthusiasm that his new 'landlady' exuded was a little off-putting to Sam. "All the same," Sam glumly muttered, "Living with a bookish, FRIENDLY unicorn in an actual house has got to be better than living with a nerdy, clinical pony in a research facility..."

Celestia smiled. "Great! Then it's settled. Twilight, when you and Spike are ready to leave, I'll have one of the concierges gather Sam's things."

Twilight leaned towards the Princess. "Princess, can I speak to you in private for a moment?" Celestia nodded.

The Princess faced Sam. "We'll be back momentarily."

Stepping into the hallway, the Princess leaned down to hear what her prized pupil had to say. "Princess, is he alright? I can't place a hoof on it but I think he might be ill. I don't have the abilities to care for sick guests, let alone guests of an unfamiliar species."

The Princess sighed sadly. "Yes, I wondered if you might pick up on that. I doubt he's actually ill. Bear in mind, my little pony, Sam has been through a lot recently. As far as we know, he's the only one of his people left, and now he's been thrown into a foreign world and a society much different from what he knows. This is why I chose you to take him on, Twilight Sparkle. His condition is after only a single night in the dungeon after he was first found, he's been in here under watch ever since; someone in his state needs more than just a researcher prodding him for information. He needs a friend, and the space to deal with his situation."

Twilight's worried expression changed to determination. "I won't let you down, Princess!"

Celestia was beaming. "I knew I could count on you! Now, one other detail. Since you'll be effectively taking care of Sam, I'll obviously be increasing your monthly stipend to cover the added costs of him living with you."

"Thank you, Princess. I'll do my best to take care of Sam. I can't wait to pick his brain on... Well... Everything!"

"Of course you can't. Do remember, he's not a book!" The Princess giggled.

Sam wearily called out, "Twilight, I'm ready to leave whenever you are."

Twilight grinned sheepishly. "I guess that's my cue. I hate cutting a visit with you short, but if we leave now, we can get back to Ponyville in time for a slightly late dinner."

"Very well. You go get Spike, and I'll have a concierge escort Sam down to meet you. OH! One final thing, rather than take him on the train, where who knows how many ponies will see him, I've arranged for a carriage to take you back home." Celestia turned to walk back towards her chambers, before stopping and looking back over her shoulder. "And, Twilight? It is good to see you!"

Twilight made her way back to the main gate, where Spike was waiting, idly licking icing and sprinkles from his claws. His face was covered in donut remnants.

"So, Twi, where's Sam, and when should we run on to catch the train?" Spike asked lazily.

"He should be right behind us. And the Princess is having a private carriage take us home tonight." Turning back towards the castle gate, Twilight saw Sam's thin form, flanked by a lone pony in a bellhop's uniform, advancing towards where she and Spike were waiting.

Sam took a few deep breaths, taking in the sight of the castle imposed against the soft evening sky. He didn't have much to say as the carriage was loaded with their belongings, and he maintained this silence all the way to Ponyville, despite Twilight's attempts to carry a conversation.

"So... What do you think of Canterlot?" She asked with an eager grin on her face.

Sam stared out through the carriage window.

"How did you like staying in the palace?" Twilight inquired earnestly.

Still no answer.

Spike chimed in. "Hey bro, you like donuts?"

Sam sighed. "Look, I appreciate you two letting me stay with you. But you're both going to have a long time to ask me questions, and I'm... I'm beat. The last few days have been less than wonderful for me. Just... Let me get some rest and we'll get started fresh in the morning, ok?"

Spike rolled his eyes. "Whoa, what a buzzkill."

"Spike!" Snapped Twilight.

For the remainder of the trip back to Ponyville, the trio rode in silence.

After what seemed like an eternity spent in silence, the carriage arrived at Twilight's library. As the driver helped his passengers disembark and retrieve their belongings, Sam stretched his legs and looked around. The sun had already set, but he could just barely make out some thatched cottages a short distance down from this treehouse, for lack of a better term.

Twilight attempted to cheerily break the silence. "Well, this is home!"

Sam scratched his head. "You live in a tree, huh?"

"Yep, it's the town library. You wouldn't think a girl like me would be a librarian, I bet!" Twilight said with a grin.

Sam rolled his eyes. "Yeah, total shocker."

Spike yawned, stretching his arms. "Are we gonna go inside or is there a surprise Pinkie Pie party out here that I'm not in on?"

Twilight nodded. "After you, number one assistant." She thanked the driver, and bid him goodnight.

Once inside, the primary issue on Spike's mind was, yet again, food. "So uh... What are we doing for dinner, Twi?"

"Hmm... Well, I figured tonight we'd try to do something nice for our new friend. Sam, anything in particular you'd like? I just made a trip to the market yesterday, and grabbed tons of fruits. Maybe some steamed vegetables? Sam?"

He was too busy following with his eyes the almost endless stacks of bookshelves that lined the inside of Twilight's treehouse.

"Oh, right, sorry. That all sounds fine," Sam said with a short wave of his hand, "but really, I just want to sleep. Just tell me where to crash and I'll be out of your hair for the night."

"Fair enough." Twilight seemed a little disappointed, but she motioned for him to follow her upstairs. "I didn't know I'd have anypony moving in today, so I haven't had time to get another bed set up. You can take mine tonight, I can sleep on my couch. I've got a little reading I want to catch up on anyway."

You don't say... "You sure you don't want ME to take the couch? I don't want to impose anymore than I have to."

Twilight looked up at him and smiled. "Oh it's no bother, just one night. I've got a spare bed frame and mattress in the closet. If you're really that worried about imposing, you can help me set it up tomorrow." The pair reached the top of the stairs. "Anyway... My room is right around the corner. Make yourself at home, and I'll see you in the morning. If you need anything, just ask!"

Having settled her new housemate, Twilight made her way back downstairs to the kitchen to make something for Spike and herself to eat. She settled on a simple salad with daisies, adding a few bits of ground-up turquoise to Spike's. As they ate their meal, Twilight wondered if she was up for this; she'd be effectively rehabilitating a traumatized alien.

After dinner, Twilight tucked Spike in, and moved to take her spot on her couch by the window. After shuffling around to find the most comfortable position, she curled up and levitated her current reading material several inches away from her face. The cover read "Advanced Magical Meditation, 6th Edition." After reading the first five editions, Twilight was excited to learn what the sixth had to contribute. She was halfway through the revised chapter on "Maintaining Focus" when she heard yelling and groaning coming from her room.

She jumped up and galloped upstairs to see what the problem was. The yelling got louder as she got closer to her room. Inside, she saw Sam tossing and turning in the bed, but still asleep. Twilight let out a small, relieved sigh; he was only having a nightmare. A rational reaction, she figured, to whatever it was he had experienced.

Sam saw his family. His mother, father, and younger sister were all walking with him on a beach. They came here to this same pristine beach every year for a Summer vacation. Though Sam had long since graduated from university, moved out of his parents place, and nailed down a job that kept him several hours away from his hometown, he always managed to get time off to go on the traditional family trip.

His father turned to say something to him, probably a joke, as usual, but while Sam could see his mouth moving, he couldn't hear any words. He couldn't hear anything. Before he could react, he saw his family's faces contorting into horrific expressions of fear and panic. Sam spun around just in time to see a mushroom cloud expanding, before blowing his family and himself away.

Sam bolted upright with a start, still screaming, and arms flailing wildly. He was further startled to hear another yelp next to him.

"Sam! Sam, it's me, it's Twilight, you were just having a nightmare!" The unicorn reached up to place a hoof on his shoulder to try and calm him down. Sam looked down and saw two big purple eyes staring up at him worriedly.

Sam gave a nervous laugh. "Nightmare, yeah... Uh, sorry if I scared you."

"Likewise. Are you going to be ok? I've got this tea that I usually make when I have trouble sleeping... It'd be no problem to make some. I could go for a cup myself..."

"Thanks, but I'll be ok. Just let me go back to sleep." Sam laid back down.

Twilight nodded. "Ok. Well, I'm still making that tea. If you want any, feel free to help yourself." Sam was already out cold again. She quietly walked back down to the kitchen, amazed that Spike was still asleep. She knew he was a heavy sleeper, but this was ridiculous.

The gradually growing glare of the sun roused Sam from sleep, not that he had really been sleeping for long. He sat up and stretched his legs; he'd been curled up in a slightly awkward position since the bed was designed for an occupant half his size.

His nose caught the scent of something sweet coming from the kitchen, and his stomach loudly reminded him that he hadn't eaten anything since he'd left Canterlot. He laced up his shoes and went downstairs, making sure to duck as he passed through the doorways. Entering the kitchen, Sam was greeted by the sight of his lavender hostess and her purple lackey working on breakfast.

Twilight heard him come in. "Oh, Sam! You're up! I hope you slept well, all things considered. Come have some breakfast with us."

Sam's stomach ordered him to comply. "Sure."

A few minutes later, Twilight levitated three bowls onto the table, and ladled a portion of something closely resembling oatmeal into each of them. Spooning up a mouthful, Sam realized that it actually *was* oatmeal, maple syrup-flavored, too. He chuckled quietly to himself.

Twilight barely heard him laughing. "What's so funny?"

Sam swallowed. "Oh, nothing really. Just struck me as odd that even several million years into the future, oatmeal is still a common breakfast food."

"Well, yeah, what else would it be?" Spike said, raising an eyebrow.

"Nevermind. So, Twilight, I'm guessing you're going to wanna start interrogating me after breakfast, eh?" Sam hit the bottom of his bowl.

Twilight's eyes lit up. "Sure! Oh, this is going to be so exciting! All your history, culture, and techn-" She could feel Sam's eyes shooting daggers at her. "Sorry, heh. Let's finish breakfast first, then."

"One other thing. I think I may know the answer to this already, but am I free to kind of roam around? I mean in town? Or am I under house arrest here?"

"Eventually, yeah, I'd really like to show you around. But for now, I'd rather you hang around inside for a while. Everypony else can generally be pretty accepting, but I think it would be best to take foal-steps on that one, as they can also be pretty easily spooked."

Sam sighed, and continued eating his oatmeal. He had to admit, she had a reasonable point. "Whatever you say."

Once the matter of the morning meal was wrapped up and the dishes done, Twilight had Sam follow her into her study. She floated in some more comfortable chairs from the next room for them to sit on. With her quill and paper floating in front of her, Twilight was ready to go, even if Sam's face screamed "I don't give a buck."

"Alright, so... Unless you can't fix the archive, there's no sense in having you try to recount your entire species' history... And for now, we're assuming you can, so I think I'd just like to get to know more about your story first."

"Whatever floats your boat." Sam rolled his eyes. "Let's just get started already..."

"Ok ok... I'm sure you've gone over this several times already, but would you mind explaining to me why you're here and how you came to be here?"

"Really? You really want me to rehash that?" Sam's face was scrunched into a frown. "Fine. It's not like I haven't been having nightmares about it since I got here."

"Sorry... I just want to be thorough..." Twilight squeaked.

Sam shook his head, and waved it off dismissively. "No, I'm sorry, I wasn't expecting to be a research project for a pony..." His face softened a little, he meant for that to sound apologetic. "I can go into the dirty details of it all later, but in my time, nearly the entire planet was engaged in a massive war. A special type of bomb, a nuclear bomb, was used by many of the larger nations. Combined with the normal wear-and-tear of warfare, the residual effects of those bombs threatened to poison the land and make much of the planet uninhabitable for quite some time."

Twilight's eyes were wide-open, and her quill was quickly taking notes on Sam's story.

He continued. "So, my country developed a way out. We managed to figure out how to travel forward through time. With that ability, we hoped to send ourselves to a time where the nuclear radiation had faded and the environment had recovered from the damage we did. We built these pods, like the one I was found in, to do this. We couldn't make enough to save the entire country..." Sam's eyes got a little misty at this point. "So we held a national lottery to choose who would be sent, after giving the engineers and scientists, as well as their immediate family, a spot in the group. That's how I was picked, I was an electrical engineer who worked on the power systems, so my family and I got to go."

Twilight got a quizzical look in her eyes. "So, we should be finding others like you soon?"

Sam shook his head. "No, I doubt it. I was the last one out, and there was an attack, an explosion, right before my pod activated. The radiation must have caused a power surge or something, because between the information the Professor in Canterlot gave me, and my own knowledge of the time-pod's function, there's no way I'm only a thousand years in the future. That's where, or rather 'when', my family and people should be." Sam sighed. "Is that good enough for now? Can we talk about something a little happier?"

Twilight nodded. "Sure. So, in Equestria we've got several different races and entirely different species that exhibit sentience like you and I. In your time, were there other intelligent creatures besides humans?"

Sam gave a weak laugh. "Sometimes I wonder if you could really classify us as intelligent..." Given that we set off to kill each other, Sam finished mentally.

His sarcasm was lost on Twilight, who cocked her head. "Assuming all humans are similar to you, of course you're a sentient species. But we can debate the origin and definition of intelligence later! And... You didn't really answer my question."

"No, we were really the only intelligent species in my time. Certain primates, and dolphins, came close, but yeah, no, humans were pretty much the only ones."

Twilight mumbled to herself as she wrote. "Mhmm... Interesting... I know that you've got a spell placed on you by the researchers that translates for you, but I think it's interesting that you knew to call us 'ponies' when you first saw one of us."

"Oh, yeah. In my time, there were several types of animals that we called horses or ponies. They looked a bit different from you and the others; longer muzzles, eyes not as close together in the front, and they certainly didn't talk or have full societies going. Maybe you evolved from them or something. Biology isn't my specialty, really."

Twilight was intrigued. "Equines have been around THAT long?! Wow..." She quickly scribbled something else down on her parchment. "Ok... This is more to help me be a decent hostess. I've seen you eat some of the same things we do, but I can't imagine your diet is the exact same as a pony's. Is there anything extra that humans typically need or like?"

Sam realized he had to be careful how he approached this question; during his brief time in Canterlot, he was fairly certain that he'd seen a cow or two enjoying a conversation as they walked through the castle. "Well... Biologically, I'm more of an herbivore, though as a species we do eat meat." He rushed to finish the sentence before his unicorn friend had a heart attack, "BUT we don't really have to. We just need a source of protein, like nuts and legumes, along with fruits, vegetables, and grains. So... If you can get those sorts of things, I'll be ok. Though... If you're okay with me eating fish, that would be a great addition, nutritionally."

Twilight was relieved that her guest was not a predator, and began silently lecturing herself for even briefly thinking that the Princess would have her take in a creature that might eat her. Besides, if he were going to try to eat a pony, he'd have attacked the scientists long before I met him...

"Eh heh, yeah, I think we can handle that. Moving on... What kind of culture did your society have?"

Sam scratched his head. "That's probably more of a question for my archive, if I can fix it. We had a pretty incredibly diverse range of people in my time. Honestly, you could probably write an entire series of books devoted to any single subculture of my time. We had almost any kind of music you could imagine, art forms that were even more varied, ranging from styles similar to what I saw in the castle to styles that make you wonder who would enjoy them."

The thought of art that was unattractive and unappealing confused Twilight. "What about entertainment? Or sports?"

"Oh, yeah, we loved that sort of thing. We had stock car races, various types of ball games, video games, movies, concerts..."

Twilight cocked her head to the side. "Stock... Car?" As Sam began trying to describe automobile technology, (something Twilight was willing to bet her friend Rainbow Dash would love), Twilight noticed that he seemed to be relaxing a little bit. That weary scowl he had earlier had faded off a bit as he lost himself in telling her about how the races were held, how football was played, and attempted to describe what a 'video game' was. He decided to stick to sports for the time being.

"...Yeah, football was a PRETTY big deal in my part of the country. Hell, I remember... When my dad... Took me to a game with him..." Sam's voice trailed off, and his eyes seemed to stare off towards some infinitely distant point, as the realization that his father, and the rest of his loved ones, were gone. The scene from the previous night's nightmare flashed back into his imagination.

"Sam? You ok?" Twilight saw sadness flash briefly before his face straightened out again.

"Yeah. Fine. Nothing."

Twilight wanted to talk more, but sensed that Sam probably wasn't sharing her enthusiasm at this point. "I think... Maybe we can take a break for a while. Why don't you come help Spike and I set up your bed?" She got up, called for Spike, and walked towards a closet in the hallway. Sam followed.

It took the trio several tries, and more time than Spike was happy to waste, (especially working through lunch), to assemble the bed. Twilight, obsessive-compulsive as ever, would disassemble the entire thing if she noticed even the slightest misalignment. She'd apologize and giggle, Spike would press his palm into his face, and Sam just stood there, emotionless. The way he responded to questions and requests to pass tools to his partners reminded Twilight of a mechanical toy robot that Spike used to play with. His voice was flat and unaffected. Twilight wasn't sure if she should be worried, but at least he wasn't being so sarcastic anymore.

Twilight kept a close watch on Sam out of the corner of her eye all the way through dinner. Though he wasn't totally ignoring his housemates when they spoke to him, he was oddly stiff and flat in the way he addressed them. It was as if his mind was somewhere far away from Ponyville.

The meal over, Twilight went upstairs to move Sam's things into the spare room. She managed to find some extra planks and another spare mattress to extend the bed to better fit someone of Sam's size. Though her new housemate hadn't exactly been as pleasant as she'd hoped, she wanted to make sure he was comfortable all the same.

She passed him on her way to her own room. "I hope you sleep well, goodnight!"

Sam didn't even look down as he said, "Goodnight," and shut his door behind him.

Twilight raised an eyebrow as she closed the door to her own room, and settled down to sleep herself. "I hope he's not going to be like that for much longer..."

Sam wasn't sleeping. The sole thought occupying his mind was "I'll never see my family again. Everyone I know is gone." Earlier, when he remembered going to the football match with his dad, that single idea was driven through his heart and mind like a red-hot rusty nail. He was alone; as the sole remaining member of the human race, he didn't feel like he would ever fit in with this society, not that fitting in was his primary goal. No matter how he figured it, he felt like he'd be alone: either literally, by living alone, safely isolated from pony society, or figuratively by being the only human among ponies.

His grief at losing his family and the loneliness he felt began swirling together in his mind, pushing any other thought out. After an eternity spent staring into the darkness, Sam felt numb. He saw his arms and legs moving, but it felt like it wasn't him controlling them. It was if he were watching a movie from first-person perspective; he grabbed a spare bit of clothing from his bag, and walked down the hallway towards the balcony doors.

Twilight had just fallen asleep when she heard a noise coming from outside her bedroom door. At first she thought it was Spike making another late-night kitchen raid, but the footsteps were much too heavy to be Spike's. Twilight dragged herself out of bed and carefully, quietly opened her door an inch or so. Peering out, she couldn't see anyone, and the footsteps had stopped.

Allowing herself to further venture into the hallway, she spied the balcony doors sitting open. She feared she may have a burglar, so she levitated next to her the heaviest object she had nearby: a large self-help book titled "Organizing Your Life Part 2: Organizing Your Checklists." She carefully began sneaking through the hallway, hoping whatever had been in her house was already gone.

She heard some scuffling and a tearing noise coming from the balcony. She screamed and galloped the rest of the way to the balcony, hoping to scare off this intruder. To her shock and surprise, what she saw once she crossed through the balcony door was not a burglar.

Sam was standing on the balcony rail, with one of his spare cotton pants ripped and tied into a makeshift noose around his neck, the other end tied to the door frame.

"Sam?! What are you doing?!" Twilight screamed. Sam continued staring out into the distance.

"Sam! Take a step back, please! Whatever you're thinking about doing, don't do it!" She saw Sam shift his right foot and flex his legs.

He jumped.

"NO!" Thinking fast, Twilight concentrated to summon her energy into her horn. Quickly, the glow moved from her horn to one of Sam's feet, suspending him in midair just before the cloth pulled tight. Twilight further focused her energy, pulling him back up onto the balcony.

As she set him down in front of her, he began thrashing and yelling at Twilight. He grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her violently. "Why'd you stop me?! Why didn't you just let me go!" He let go of her, and his yelling became quiet sobs. He collapsed onto the ground, slumped against the door frame.

Twilight moved closer to him and sat down beside him. She reached up and placed a hoof on his shoulder.

Sam stopped crying and took a deep breath. "I'm... I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me there... I... This whole thing, I just lost it. I mean... Twilight, everyone I've ever cared about, I'll never see them again. Beyond that, my species is dead. After me, humanity is gone for good. Besides, what's the point of me being here, anyway?"

Twilight could feel her own eyes watering up slightly. "Look, Sam, I'm not gonna try to say I understand what you're dealing with. I can't even say for sure what I'd do in your position. All the same, I'm sorry you have to deal with all of this. I know it can't be easy. But for what it's worth, I'm here for you..."

Sam weakly nodded, and looked out at the night sky.

"And... Yeah, you're right, you may be the last of your kind. But if I hadn't caught you, you wouldn't have been the only thing to die tonight. All that knowledge of your past, your history... It would go with you, especially since you're the only one who can fix your archive. I know it sounds a little cliche, but if you help preserve that knowledge, you can at least let your society live on in that way... You know, preserve humanity's legacy?"

Sam sighed. "I guess it would be a shame to lose all of that..." Sam looked down into the unicorn's eyes. "Thanks for keeping me from doing something stupid."

Twilight stood up and wrapped her forelegs around Sam's shoulders in a hug. Briefly taken aback, Sam reached around and placed an arm around her.

Spike came drowsily stumbling onto the balcony, rubbing his eyes. "Hey... What's the big idea? What's a dragon gotta do to get some sleep around here?"

Twilight let go of Sam and turned to face the dragon. "Oh, sorry Spike. Sam wasn't feeling so well, and needed some fresh air. I was checking up on him." She didn't want him to know that their new houseguest had just attempted to kill himself.

"Oh, ok. Well, if anypony needs me, I'm going back to bed. G'night Twi, g'night Sam." Spike waddled off.

Twilight turned her attention back to Sam. "Are you ok?"

Sam nodded slowly. "Not exactly, but I think I will be..."

"Well... If you need anypony to talk to..."

"Thanks, Twilight."

He stood up to walk back to bed, and Twilight followed close behind, shutting the balcony doors as she reentered the house.


	3. Chapter 3 Pleased To Meet You, I Think?

**Hey everyone, I was able to get another chapter in thanks to the three day weekend we had not to long ago. Just to answer some of the questions I am getting emailed a lot of….My PSN name is JokerBoi92 for those of you who have a PS3, The character Sam is loosely based on me since…My name is Sam ****, and As far as what will happen between Sam & Twilight….You'll just have to keep reading to find out ****. Again Thanks to all my Fans and followers for your support. Enjoy Chapter 3- **

**Chapter 3: Pleased To Make Your Acquaintance, I Think**

Twilight drowsily rubbed her eyes as the morning light began trickling through her bedroom window. As she went through her usual morning routine of stretching and brushing her mane, she mentally recounted the events of the previous night. She wasn't sure if she was handling it well, or if the reality had just not sunk in completely. She couldn't recall the last time anypony had tried to do such an awful thing to themselves. In fact, Twilight was unsure that there had been even a single suicide attempt, let alone a successful one, among ponykind in the last few hundred years.

"Just what have I gotten myself into..." Twilight sighed, looking into her mirror halfway expecting her reflection to respond. "More important than that, I hope he's gonna be ok."

Satisfied with the precise orderliness of her appearance, Twilight cantered down the hallway towards the stairs. Passing by Sam's room, she decided to check on him. She slowly creaked open the door, and craned her neck in through the crack.

Sam wasn't in his room.

Fearing the worst, Twilight quickly tore through the top floor. Having no luck in finding him there, she practically flew down the stairs, yelling out his name.

"Sam! Where'd you go?!" Her eyes were wide with the realization that, if Sam had indeed made another attempt on his own life, she might be too late. She came skidding and stumbling to a stop in the kitchen where Spike, previously enjoying himself in the task of making breakfast, was standing at attention, on alert.

"What's wrong Twilight?!"

"It's Sam, I can't find him, please tell me you've seen him!"

Almost immediately, Spike relaxed and stood at ease. "Chill, will ya? He's just downstairs in the basement. Something about transforming and neutron mumbo jumbo. Go see for yourself! I've almost got breakfast ready for us anyway."

Suspiciously eyeing Spike, Twilight made her way to the cellar. Sure enough, she saw Sam's familiar blue cotton coveralls, their wearer hunched over Twilight's workbench quietly humming to himself. Twilight let out a relieved sigh as she trotted down to see what he was up to.

"Well, you certainly made for an early start today! Glad to see you're feeling better," Twilight said with an almost-strained cheer in her voice.

Sam stood up with a start, quickly relaxing as he realized who his visitor was. "Ah, uhm, yeah, after last night, I couldn't really sleep," Sam said, scratching the back of his head with a wrench, "and what you said to me last night... I got to thinking, you're right. Getting my civilization's knowledge back is probably one of the best things I can do. I think I like the idea of having some sort of 'grand project' to pour myself into. Of course, all the knowledge and expertise in the world won't help if I don't have the right kind of power."

Twilight cocked her head. "What do you mean? Don't your devices run on electricity like my lab equipment here?"

Sam nodded. "Yeah, they do, but it's not that simple. See, it took me some very... Shocking, if you'll pardon the pun, efforts to figure out what voltage your system uses. Thankfully, you ponies had a little surprise for me; I wasn't expecting for your technology to have already advanced to using alternating current."

"Why is that?"

"For starters, it saves me from having to put together an inverter to convert direct current to alternating so that I can use my chargers. Those inverter circuits are fairly irritating to deal with. And, it seems you are using a frequency similar to what we used. It's not exactly what I'd like it to be, but it'll do well enough for my purposes. That means that all I need to do is wire up a transformer," Sam pointed to an iron ring with a coil of wire wrapped around each side, "to step down the voltage for my power adapters."

Twilight laughed. "So that's what Spike was rambling on about."

Sam put his hand over his face, shaking his head. "But yeah, been down here for a few hours plugging away at that thing. Be glad you aren't an electrician; it might be a week before I get feeling in my hands back,' Sam winced, flexing his fingers. Twilight saw several small burn marks on his hands.

Twilight put a hoof to her chin to think. "Once you get that transformer made, you'll be able to use your computer and everything else?" Sam nodded in response.

Sam continued wrapping the wire around the iron. "Yeah, then I can do more than just answer your questions. I've got tons of pictures and other bits of my old life stored on it..." He sighed, set down the transformer, and turned to face the unicorn librarian. "Hey, look, um, I'm not that great at apologies, but..."

Twilight interrupted, smiling. "Oh no, you don't have to apologize for anyth-"

"No, let me finish, please."

"Sorry," Twilight grinned sheepishly.

"It's alright, look, I know I haven't exactly been the most pleasant guy in the world since I've been here. And I'm especially sorry that I pulled that little stunt last night. I swear I'm not usually like that; I don't know what was up with me." Sam sat down on the bench. "So I guess what I'm saying is, I'm sorry, and thank you for being so understanding. And thanks for being there for me last night. It's been a long time since I've really had someone to talk to."

Twilight trotted over to the bench and jumped up next to Sam. "Like I said, you don't have to apologize for anything. I can't imagine how crazy this whole ordeal has been for you. I could probably read every book in Equestria and still have no idea what I would do in your position."

The two sat in silence for a few moments, before the loud gurgling of unsatisfied appetites broke the quiet, causing both of them to laugh awkwardly.

Sam stood up. "Maybe I should take a break for some breakfast..."

"Yeah, Spike was just finishing up the cooking when I came down, I think he's made some blueberry muffins today." Twilight jumped down from the stool. "Feel up to taking more questions afterwards?"

"Sure. I kinda cut things short yesterday, didn't I?"

Sam and Twilight made their way back upstairs to the kitchen.

After they'd finished their morning meal, Twilight and Sam moved to her study for another round of interviewing.

"Before you start interviewing me again, mind if I ask a question first?"

Twilight nodded. "Frankly I'm surprised you don't ask more. Please go ahead!"

Sam pointed at Twilight's flank. "Yeah, so those flank-marks that all the ponies seem to have, does everyone here go and get tattoos on their rear ends? What's with that?"

Twilight giggled. "Oh you mean our 'cutie-marks'. They just sort of appear; their appearance is related to our special talent or whatever our greatest passion in life is, and once we learn and realize what that is, our marks appear. My talent is magic, and I think the reason my mark is a starburst is because, when I discovered my ability, the sheer power of my ability caused a bright, colorful flash. At least, that's what the Princess told me; I kind of went into a trance. It was a strange afternoon. I even accidentally turned my mom and dad into potted plants!" She noticed Sam's shocked look. "Oh, don't worry! The Princess helped me change them back. They're both just fine!"

Sam scratched his head. "I guess that all makes about as much sense as anything else around here. That's all I've got for now."

Twilight once again readied her quill, ink, and parchment, levitating them in the air around her. She cleared her throat.

"So... The last thing we talked about was some of the things your culture liked doing... But I feel like I haven't really gotten to know you yet."

Sam raised an eyebrow. "...And you need to take notes for that?"

Twilight grinned. "Oh, that's just to take down anything interesting about your time that you talk about, it's not like I'll be writing down your favorite color or anything! Anyway... You've already told me how you got here, but would you mind giving me a short history of yourself? I guess start with your childhood. And please, if you don't want to talk about something, just tell me and we can talk about something else."

"Sure. For starters, I'm 24 years old, a fairly young adult by my society's measure, so my childhood wasn't all that long ago, to me anyway. I grew up in an area not too dissimilar from Ponyville, really rural place. My grandparents owned a farm, they grew hay mostly, but raised some cows and horses on the side. I went to school like a normal kid, but during the summer I'd help my grandpa out on the farm with my cousins, go to the beach with my parents and my sister, you know, pretty normal childhood for where I grew up..."

"What's her name? Your sister, I mean."

"Ellen. She was my complete polar opposite, haha..." Sam's eyes briefly watered up before he continued. "Totally outgoing, bubbly personality, and so nice to everyone that she was actually kind of annoying sometimes."

"Sounds like a certain friend of mine," Twilight said with a giggle.

"Speaking of your friends, am I going to get to meet anyone else any time soon?"

"Definitely. I've been meaning to invite one or two over, but they're about as busy as I am anyway." Twilight made a note to herself: Invite friends to meet Sam?

"But anyway, yeah, my childhood was pretty normal up until my teenage years. I'd always been kind of a geek, an egghead, but it wasn't until then that it was really obvious. I can't tell you how much my classmates enjoyed teasing and picking on me. I kinda stopped trying to make friends at about that time." Sam shifted his gaze to the floorboards.

Twilight's memory flashed images of her own schoolfilly days, particularly her time in magic kindergarten. She could still hear her classmates' jeers and giggles at her expense as they played keep-away, levitating her favorite books away from her through the air.

Sam snapped his fingers. "Twilight? You ok there?" Her eyes, and mind, seemed focused on something far off in the distance.

Coming back to reality, Twilight shook her head. "Yeah, sorry. That kinda brought back some nasty memories of my own... Kids are pretty rotten sometimes."

"Yeah, no kidding. It wasn't until high school and university that I really came into my own. I studied hard, with the idea being that if I worked hard enough, I could get into a nice, big university and kind of remake myself. That's where I started studying computer engineering."

"Sounds like me when the Princess sent me here. Until then, books were pretty much my whole social circle." Twilight didn't show it, but she was secretly delighted that she and Sam had something like this in common. She loved her friends dearly, but they didn't always understand what it was like for her to be such an introvert, so controlling of who she let into her life. Well... Maybe Fluttershy understood, but she's terrified of her own shadow.

"Heh, even in university, that much only changed a little for me. Engineering is a pretty demanding subject. But it was worth it, I got hired by a large company right after I graduated. They paid pretty well, but that wasn't the real benefit of working for them. That time machine I was in? My company was contracted as one of the research facilities to help design them. If I hadn't gotten that job, my family and I would have likely been stuck in a refugee camp or something after the war started. Funny how things work out, eh?"

The hours quickly ticked by. Much to Twilight's relief, Sam seemed to be in better spirits about discussing his past. Though he would still find himself tearing up when a painful reminder of his lost family cropped up in conversation, both he and Twilight were doubled over with laughter as Sam recounted a series of birthdays on which he and his best friend pranked each other rather than exchange gifts. Twilight again found herself questioning Sam's sanity, though, as he ended that story.

"...And we finally decided to give it a rest when he... He..." Sam couldn't breathe for all of his laughing, "He gave me a pipe bomb!" Sam's face was flushed and his eyes streaming tears, as he attempted to catch his breath and avoid falling out of his chair.

Twilight decided at that moment that she'd likely never fully understand some ponies, or 'people', as Sam referred to others. Setting aside her writing tools, she felt a brief pang of disappointment that she hadn't really taken down any notes. That feeling was quickly supplanted, however, by a sense of satisfaction over the fact that she had seen Sam actually smiling and laughing for the first time since she'd met him. She could still see the distinct pallor of grief hanging about his face, but it was having to fight for dominance with the grin that Sam wore as he recovered from his laughing fit.

Finding Sam's last story to be as good as any for a stopping point, Twilight stood up and stretched her legs. "I'm going to go grab a sandwich. Are you ready for some lunch?"

Sam shook his head. "No, I'm fine, I think I'll go back downstairs and work on that transformer a little more."

"Alright, suit yourself! If I can help, let me know!"

Sam went back down to the basement, and Twilight trotted over into the kitchen. As she began levitating to the table the necessary ingredients for a lettuce, cucumber, and daisy sandwich, Twilight was relieved at the change she had seen in Sam. She could tell that his ordeal had worn heavily on him, that much wasn't going to change anytime soon, but seeing him laugh the way he did earlier reassured her that he would be ok.

Sam lost himself in his work. His hands were beginning to cramp after hours of tedious calculations, electrical testing to figure out the line voltage and frequency, and winding the transformer wires. He felt an odd sense of satisfaction from having to do all of this work the old-fashioned way, without the use of voltmeters and all of the other advanced tools he used to take for granted.

His right hand began to throb painfully as it demanded a break. He obliged, sitting back from the table with a sigh. Sam still felt terrible about the incident the night before; he wasn't normally the type to let his emotions overtake him like that. He was especially ashamed that he had caused Twilight so much extra stress on top of the burden she normally carried; it was obvious to him that she was usually a fairly high-strung individual. He resolved to make it up to her somehow.

All the same, Sam was a little shocked at how much better he was feeling. He still felt a terrible grief clawing at his insides, but a new emotion was floating alongside it in his mind, a feeling he had not experienced since the war had begun in his own time: relief. It wasn't just that he no longer had to deal with the daily drudges and responsibilities of working in a wartime research base, or that he no longer had to fear sudden death from falling bombs. During the war, he scarcely had anyone to really talk to; when on the job, Sam and the rest of his fellow engineers focused solely on the task at hand, and he certainly didn't want to trouble his family's already worried minds with his own problems. Embarrassed as he was that she had seen him in such a rough condition the previous night, Sam was glad Twilight had been there to lend him a sympathetic ear, after saving him from himself, of course.

Sam jumped back into his task. Upon finishing the transformer, he decided to test it out on his least important item, his music player. He found it odd that, even two hundred years after Apple Inc. had been broken up as a monopoly and sold off, the term 'iPod' had stuck around as a generic name for such devices. Sam hesitantly got the necessary cabling connected, and plugged in the charger; he caught himself holding his breath as he waited for the device's screen to light up and indicate charging. After a few tense seconds, sure enough, the iPod powered up, relieving Sam's anxiety over whether or not he'd be deprived of his music, one of his only remaining luxuries from his own time.

Sam decided this was a good point to stop and take a break; he wished he had gone ahead and eaten lunch when Twilight did, his stomach angrily grumbling in agreement.

The rest of the evening passed uneventfully. Sam had decided to wait his hunger out another hour and have dinner with Spike and Twilight. Remembering Sam's mentioning of fish as a good food source for humans, Twilight had Spike try his hand at catching a few. Seeing as how neither the young dragon or the unicorn mare ate any sort of meat, they had no idea how to prepare it for their housemate, so Sam took it upon himself to do something he hadn't done since before the war had started. He attempted to cook. He quickly remembered why he usually stuck with simple dishes or let his past girlfriends cook for him; he effortlessly burnt the fish to a black, inedible crisp.

Even after living at Twilight's library for a few days, Sam still seemed to be having trouble getting used to bathing in a shower designed for a creature that was, at most, half his height. He found himself having to crouch just to fit underneath the shower head, and Twilight had already learned to dismiss Sam's yells of pain, annoyance, and frustration when he slipped. She had no idea why he kept making loud, angry references about gods and dams, though, and made a mental note to ask Sam about religion the next time they had a question session.

Everyone settled into their beds for the night. Twilight drifted off to sleep with a small, satisfied smile on her face, confident that Princess Celestia would be proud of her for taking such good care of Sam so far. Spike wasn't quite as satisfied; after all, he watched Sam burn up on the stove almost all of the effort he had put forth to catch those fish.

Sam, however, was just simply not sleeping well at all. He managed to drift off briefly, but was abruptly jolted back to consciousness. He had once again had a nightmare, the same one as usual; walking with his family on the beach, before being blasted to oblivion by a nuclear explosion. Feeling familiar with this dream by now, he managed to keep quiet despite his cold sweat and racing pulse.

As he stared at the ceiling, wondering if he would be able to sleep at all that night, one question stuck out in his mind.

Sam took a few deep breaths. "I wonder if things turned out ok for everyone. I hope mom, dad, and Ellen managed to live the best lives they could, wherever and whenever they ended up..."

The next day passed relatively quickly. Twilight decided not to have a question session that day, as she wanted to take a day to catch up on some other studies she had been working on before she took on Sam. Besides, she thought it would be nice to give Sam a little time to himself; she knew he'd probably spend most of it working on restoring the archive drive, but if he was anything like herself, Twilight figured letting him lose himself in his project would help him clear his head.

Still, the unicorn did occasionally take a few minutes for a study break to go check on her human friend, to make sure he wasn't working himself crazy. Twilight cringed slightly as she remembered that everypony in Ponyville was aware of the sort of hijinks that occurred when she didn't manage her stress in a healthy manner.

Twilight sighed. "I never did get my old stuffed doll back... I think Big Mac ran off with it," she said to herself. She trotted down the stairs to see how Sam was doing. Just as with last time, he was so absorbed in his project that he didn't hear the sound of hooves on the ground coming up behind him.

"How's it coming along, Sam?" Twilight asked, a cheerful smile on her face.

Sam jumped straight into the air with a shout. Upon landing, with an exasperated tone he said, "Geez, do you always have to startle me like that?" His glare softened when he saw her grinning. "I suppose you do, don't you."

Twilight giggled. "I'm sorry, it's too easy! You must just be really focused. You know I called your name like three times as I was coming down, right?"

Sam shrugged. "Guess I just didn't hear."

"That much is obvious." Twilight was laughing again. "How is everything coming along?"

Sam motioned for her to take a closer look at his work, and pointed to a segment of metal and plastic that he had under Twilight's desk-mount magnifying glass. "You see this? This is the main bit of damage here. Those tiny little metal lines are the connections I have to remake. Hopefully, that's the only real problem, but I won't know until I can connect it to my computer." He turned to face Twilight again. "I'm actually glad you came down here, I need a soldering iron to actually connect the metal and some of these other parts. You wouldn't happen to have one would you? I haven't seen one down here."

Twilight shook her head. "No, I'm afraid I don't. I think my friend Rarity does, though."

Sam raised an eyebrow. "You mean one of your friends is also into electronics? I didn't think this sort of stuff was common knowledge in Equestria."

"Oh, no, she's not, she's a dress designer."

"I don't follow. Why would she have a soldering iron?"

"She loves to use jewelry and gemstones to add to her designs, and she sometimes uses a soldering iron to work with the gemstones' metal settings. I'll ask her to bring one over; I'm going to meet her in town in an hour or so. I'm inviting her and one of my other friends, Applejack, to drop by tomorrow. They've been interested in seeing what's kept me so busy lately."

"Thanks, that would be incredibly helpful." Sam frowned a little. "Are you sure it's a good idea for your friends to meet me? Didn't you say they're really easily spooked?"

Twilight laughed. "Oh, it's fine. They, and my other friends, have dealt with things far more... Terrifying than you. Applejack and Rarity are two of my more level-headed friends. Now, if we were talking about my other three friends, it would be a different story."

"How so?"

"Well... You'd go over great with Pinkie Pie, she loves EVERYpony, but she's so over-the-top hyperactive that, frankly, I'm not sure you're ready to deal with her yet," Twilight said with a giggle. "Rainbow Dash, well, she's a great friend, though sometimes she needs to be reigned in a bit. She's off in Cloudsdale right now anyway. Then, there's Fluttershy. YOU would have nothing to worry about from her, she's a really gentle pony, but unless she were to see that most of us are okay around you, she might just be scared to death of you. Her name is very fitting, I'm afraid. It's an issue of hers that we're working on with her..."

"Sounds like a rather interesting group."

Twilight sighed. "You have no idea. I love them all dearly but you wouldn't believe the situations we get ourselves into with each other. Oh, speaking of my dress-making friend, that reminds me of a question I've been meaning to ask for a while. Do you humans always wear clothes? Why exactly is that?"

"Yeah, we pretty much always wear them. We aren't like most animals; we really only have a small amount of hair covering a few areas of our bodies. Unless the climate is really temperate, we don't keep a great deal of our body heat. Plus, some members of my species who have lighter skin, like myself, can get nasty sunburns pretty easily. Now, there are some races that wore very little, if any, clothing, but they lived in much warmer climates, and they had darker skin that could better handle the sun."

"Wow. Really only the more wealthy ponies wear clothes as frequently as you do. Most of us just dress up for special occasions, like the Gala that my friends and I attended several months back. Rarity made us the most beautiful dresses!"

"Is that so? So far, the only ponies I've seen wearing clothes were the palace guards and the two scientists that first studied me. But yeah, those are the reasons why my species first started covering ourselves. We almost never go unclothed, even if the environment would allow it." Sam laughed. "We have a pretty strong sense of modesty."

"I'm sure Rarity will LOVE to meet you; somepony who wears clothes all the time? That sort of customer would be a dream come true for her," Twilight chuckled.

Sam got the feeling that an encounter with Rarity might not be as much fun for him.

Twilight suddenly remembered how much reading she still had left to finish. "Well, I'll let you get back to work. I need to get back myself. If you need anything, just let me or Spike know!"

"I heard that! I'm napping!" A faint voice yelled from upstairs.

Sam and Twilight quietly spent the rest of the day diligently working at their tasks. Sam spent much of his time almost on autopilot taking notes of the supplies and tools he would need to get started on this task. He especially enjoyed having his iPod recharged; he could feel the seconds quickly turning into hours as he continued his work.

Finally, around dinner time, Twilight decided she had read enough; her vision was beginning to blur due to eye fatigue. She went downstairs to see if Sam was ready to eat as well; she had stumbled across detailed, foolproof instructions on how to cook fish, and there was still one left untouched from the previous night's dinner disaster.

Sam knew it had to have been a little unpleasant for Twilight to look up information on how to prepare and cook meat, but he was thankful that she had gone out of her way to further take care of him like that.

In between mouthfuls of bread and fish, Sam spoke up. "Hey, Twilight, thanks for finding that recipe, you have no idea how long it's been since I've had food like this. This is nearly as good as when my grandma would cook for me."

Twilight smiled. "Oh, it was no problem. I'm just glad the kitchen doesn't smell like fire and smoke again."

"Hey, what about me? I'm the one who went through all the trouble of catching those things," Spike yelled with a pout.

"Don't worry, I was getting to you, besides, I did thank you last night, remember? But I'll say it again, thanks so much for getting these for me. Though, next time, take me with you and I'll show you an easier way than just using your claws." Sam had no intention of making Spike permanently take fishing duty, but he did want to spend a little time getting to know his other housemate. Besides, if he's a friend of Twilight's, surely he's not always that sarcastic. He's almost as bad as me sometimes, though.

"Oh, yeah, you're right, sorry," Spike replied, a red hint of embarrassment showing on his face. "That would be great though, those fish are ridiculously slippery, dude."

"No problem." Sam resumed chowing down.

The three continued their meal, exchanging a little bit of small talk about what they had done over the course of the day in between mouthfuls. After the meal was finished, and the dishes washed and put away, everyone returned to their earlier tasks for a brief time before getting ready for bed.

After breakfast the next day, Twilight insisted that Sam take a break from his archive work, as she expected Applejack and Rarity to stop in at any moment.

Sure enough, only a few minutes passed before there was a knock at the door. Twilight's horn glowed briefly as she opened the door from across the room.

"Come on in, girls!" She called to the door.

Two ponies stepped inside. The first to enter was a orange pony with a blonde mane covered with a Stetson hat, a few light freckles dotting her face, and three apples marking her flank. Sam noticed that she was a bit more similar to ponies he'd seen in his own time, as her forehead lacked a horn. The second guest was an alabaster white unicorn, her purple mane and tail obviously painstakingly styled into position, with three diamonds on her flank.

The orange one spoke up first. "Hi there Twi', so what's this project of yers that's kept ya so busy lately?"

The white unicorn added, "Yes, darling, we've all been wondering where you've been and if you were ok!"

Twilight pointed a hoof towards Sam. "Girls, meet Sam Mitchell. Sam, meet Applejack," she pointed at the orange pony, "and Rarity," pointing at the white pony. Both guests' eyes were wide open.

"Lands' sakes, Twilight, what is that?" Applejack exclaimed.

"Sam's a human. Long story short, a long time before Equestria existed, and before even the Princesses existed, there was an entire race of humans like Sam. He managed to travel forward in time from..." Twilight scratched her head as she thought, "How long ago did you say it was, Sam?"

"I'd say it was at the very least a few hundred million years ago," Sam replied.

Rarity's eyes bugged out even further. "He can talk?!"

"Yes, I can. And it's very nice to finally meet some of Twilight's friends." Sam extended a hand in their direction.

Applejack quickly picked up on the gesture; she trotted over to him and placed a hoof into his hand and they shook. "Nice ta meet ya, Sam, any friend o' Twilight's is a friend o' mine." She withdrew her hoof. "Say, Twilight, how'd he end up with you anyhow?"

Rarity interjected, "And why is he wearing such ghastly unfashionable clothing?!"

"Rarity!" Twilight gave a slight scowl in her direction, as did Sam.

"What? It is though, dear..." Rarity pouted slightly.

"Anyway, AJ, he's here with me by request of the Princess. I'm supposed to help him adjust to living among ponykind and learn about him and his people. Also, he's spending his time here with me repairing a data archive he had with him. You have no idea how much we have to learn from him!"

"Eh heh, ya'll have fun with that Twi. So Sam, how ya likin' Ponyville so far? Right pleasant place ain't it?"

Sam reached up and absent-mindedly rubbed the back of his head. "To be honest, I haven't really gotten to see much of it yet; Twilight wants to be careful about introducing me into society."

"Well now that's a darn shame. Tell ya what, if you and Twilight have a moment tomorrow, ya'll oughta drop by Sweet Apple Acres. You're lookin' a little thin there, Sam, so don't be surprised if'n my Granny Smith tries to fatten ya up with some of our famous Apple Family apple pie, not to mention all our other bits of bakin'."

Twilight's face lit up. "You know, AJ, that sounds like a great idea! Didn't you say you grew up on a farm yourself, Sam?"

Sam nodded. "Yeah, I did. I think I'd like that a lot, Applejack." Applejack reached up to shake his hand again. Sam looked down and saw Applejack's smile and bright green eyes looking back up at him. He saw the kindness in her eyes and couldn't help but be reminded of one of his cousins from the summers he spent on the family farm.

"Then it's settled. Ya'll come on down soon as you get a minute, and I'll show ya 'round, Sam." Applejack turned to Twilight. "Thanks for introducin' me to yer new friend. I'd love ta stay an' chat a lil' more, but Big Mac's waitin' on me to help him haul a couple dozen bushels of apples down into the cellar." Applejack looked back at Sam as she made for the door. "Pleasure ta meet ya Sam, see ya'll 'round!"

"So... Sam, Twilight told me yesterday that you needed to borrow one of my irons for your project, I believe I brought one with me if you still need it." Rarity's horn glowed as a soldering iron floated out of her saddlebag.

Sam grabbed the iron. "Thank you, Rarity. I'll return it to you as soon as I'm done, or sooner if you need it back."

"Oh that's quite alright, darling, I have a few extra. Keep it as long as you need. If I may ask a question, do you always wear clothes?" Rarity had an eyebrow raised.

"Yeah, actually, we-"

"Oh Celestia!" Rarity's eyes opened wide. "A creature that always wears clothes! I have so many ideas I would like to try! I would like to apologize for my little outburst earlier. Allow me to rephrase what I said." Rarity cleared her throat. "Your clothing is very... Worn out. And, I would very much like to make some new clothes for you, if you'll allow me to take your measurements."

"Well... Ok, it's been ages since I've worn anything that wasn't ration- HEY WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Sam felt his clothes moving seemingly of their own volition.

Twilight saw Rarity's horn glowing. "Rarity, no! What are you doing?!"

But it was too late. There stood Sam, completely naked. His face red with anger and embarrassment, he yelled, "WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!"

Rarity was completely taken aback and confused. She did that as a matter of course to all of her customers; being unclothed was a fairly normal thing for most of them, and made it much easier for Rarity to take their measurements.

Twilight broke the awkward silence first, hoping to diffuse the situation. "Um, Rarity, give him back his clothes. Humans are a little different from us. They don't like being unclothed, as Sam explained it to me, they are 'modest'. And Sam, I'm sorry, I should have mentioned this to her, that's how it normally goes for us when we go get measurements taken for new clothes..."

Sam had finished redressing himself, muttering profanities under his breath.

"Oh, Sam, it's nothing to be ashamed of, no need to be modest," Rarity giggled, "But if I have offended you, please do let me make it up to you, I-"

Sam was having none of it. "I don't care what you do! I don't need any fancy-schmancy designer clothes or any garbage like that!"

"Fancy-shmancy? GARBAGE?!" Rarity's royal-blue eyes were seething with rage. "Just who do you think you are? Most ponies around here pay me top bit for my talents, and yet here I am offering them to you as a gift! Well, I see how it is going to be! Good day Twilight, I will see you later." Rarity stormed out of the door in a huff.

Twilight had buried her face in her hoof. She looked at Sam angrily. "Was it really necessary for you to yell at her? Generosity is kind of her thing; it really hurt her to yell at her for that."

Sam was still breathing heavily, attempting to calm his anger. "Was it really necessary for her to strip me naked without even asking first?"

"I know, I know, like I said, I should have said something to her earlier. I'm really sorry. She meant well, I promise. Please tell me you'll apologize to her next time you meet..."

Sam crossed his arms. "I'll apologize to that snob as soon as she apologizes for violating me."

"What's the big deal? So she took your clothes off..."

"Maybe I wasn't clear earlier. We're MODEST, we don't go in the nude unless we're taking a shower or, well, having sex! It's a social taboo!" Sam's face was beet-red.

Twilight's eyes shot open in realization. "Oh, Celestia... I didn't know THAT'S what you meant! I'm SO sorry Sam! Ponies just don't have the same ideas about nudity as you do..." She buried her face in her hooves. "At least he got along with AJ," Twilight muttered to herself.

"If anyone needs me, Twilight, I'll be in the basement," Sam yelled out after her.

The unicorn and the human both returned to their respective projects, and scarcely spoke to one another until dinner.

Later in the evening, once all three residents of the library had sat down to eat, dinner was covered in an awkward silence. Spike had overheard the ordeal that occurred between his crush and Sam, and was none too thrilled that Sam had insulted Rarity. Twilight was still a bit embarrassed about how the whole thing had unfolded. Sam was just angry, and a bit annoyed with the furious scowl Spike kept shooting him.

Sam decided to be the first to break the quiet. "So... Uh... Twilight, when can we take Applejack up on her offer to have us for a visit?"

Twilight was relieved that somepony was finally talking. "Well, I've got some time I can spare tomorrow after breakfast, we'll go then, if you promise not to insult any more of my friends," she said dryly.

"Yeah! You can't talk to Rarity like that!" Spike angrily interjected.

Sam glared back at Spike, who had already set back to attacking his dinner. "Don't worry Twilight, Applejack seems cool enough in my book." His expression softened a bit. "She actually reminds me a bit of one of my younger cousins from back on my grandparents' farm."

"Really? Your cousin must have been really something, we all think the world of Applejack around here."

Sam sighed a little. "Yeah, Katie was a great kid..." His eyes watered up briefly. "I really do miss her sometimes."

Spike chimed in again. "Nice dinner conversation, guys."

Twilight rolled her eyes while Sam shot Spike another angry look. The conversation ceased for the remainder of the evening.

**Sorry to those who want a chapter update ASAP, I have to balance work, a social life and so on but I try to write whenever I have free time but Don't worry the longer it takes for me to update chapters, the better the story will be. Feel free to favorite and review the story, and for those who have a ps3 hit me up and we can play online sometime…and maybe some of your ideas might make it into the story…..Later Guys**

**JokerBoi92 A.K.A. Sam **


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